There are services in this city that we take for granted and also don’t hesitate to complain about.

Full disclosure, I’m guilty of this on occasion too.

Some people can get mighty indignant when they can’t bend the will of others to act as they see fit, especially when interacting with a public service. As we learned in the last municipal election, people love to give their two cents on transit. Whether or not they’ve ever stepped foot on a bus or just been stuck behind one, we heard from a city full of experts about how to operate a city-wide transit system and that includes how drivers should behave behind the wheel.

For the last five years, I have had the honour of attending the London Transit Recognition Ceremony, which honours newly retired employees, years of service, and safe driving achievements. The last four as chair of the London Transit Commission have allowed me the opportunity to shake the hands of those receiving these awards and when I say it’s an honour, I mean it without a hint of exaggeration.

Over 40 London Transit drivers received awards for safe driving of 25 years or more, the longest being 49 years. That’s over 1,300 years of safe driving records from just 44 operators. That doesn’t include the annual recognition of safe driving of all 350-plus operators. It’s a higher level of achievement and one that keeps your roads a much safer place for everyone.

As a transit user in London for nearly 40 years, these faces before me were not unfamiliar. Nearly all of them had been someone who has safely transported me from one end of this city to the other. From my first bus adventure on the #7 to go downtown to see Little Darlin’s at the Century theatre to where I am today and every adventure in-between, there’s been a trusted person behind the wheel. They helped foster independence for me (and for my children, too) and they never knew my name or where I would be headed that day. They showed up for work and did their jobs well.

Standing before the crowd in the ballroom at the ceremony, I watched as they razzed each other as long-time co-workers do. They’ve been through a lot together — lifetimes, really — and I remembered their faces from 20-40 years ago. I can pinpoint what routes some were driving and the acts of kindness that I experienced first-hand. Isn’t it interesting the positive impact people can have on your life without even knowing it?

Being a bus driver is a tough job. They put up with a lot of physical and verbal abuse from customers and the general public. The stress of driving for a living is high enough but when you add the responsibility of hundreds of lives at any given moment of the day, it takes a special kind of someone to strap themselves in to do this job. For that I am thankful.

To the operators who are new to the job and to those who have spent decades lighting the way for them to follow, thank you for showing up and doing what most people couldn’t do. I know you don’t hear it enough, but you are appreciated.

Sheryl Rooth is a London writer and the chair of the London Transit Commission